Wrench



Jan. 8, 1929.

E. BIGELOW WRENCH Filed Aug. 4, 1927 INVENTOR firkzzz gz ATTOR N EY Patented Jan. 8, 1929.

MEBLE E. BIGELOW, OF MILFORD CENTER, 05110.

Application filed August 4, 1927. Serial" No. 210,638

This invention relates to a wrench, the general object of the invention being to provide/ means for operating the wrench by power until the nut becomes tight and then operating the wrench by hand to give the nut its final movements, with means :for returning the handle part of the wrench to its starting point by the power means, after it has been moved by hand in giving the nut its final turning movement.

Another object of the invention is to provide clutch means for attaching the power driven member to the actuating member of the wrench.

This invention also consists in certain other features of construction and in the combination and arrangement of the several parts, to be hereinafter fully described, il-

lustrated in the accompanying drawings and specifically pointed out in the appended claim.

In describing my invention in detail, reference will be had to the accompanying drawings wherein like characters denote like or corresponding parts throughout the several views, and in which Figure '1 is a longitudinal sectional view through the improved wrench.

Figure 2 is a side view. Figure 3 is a section on line 3-3 of Figure 1.

In these views, 1 indicates a casing which is formed with or suitably attached to the hollow handle or stem 2. A shaft 3 is journaled in the hollow stem and has aworm 4 thereon which meshes with the worm teeth on the socket member 5 which is rotatably mounted in the-casing and the socket 6 of which. is adapted to receive'a nut or other part to be turned. The shaft extends a considerable distance from the outer end of the stem or handle and has a head 7 on its outer end which is rotatably mountedin a member 8 which has a square stem 9 for receiving the flexible shaft of the power means. A disk 10 is arranged on'the-mner face of the member 8 to form one part of the friction clutch. A clutch sleeve 11 is keyed to the shaft 3 and carries a disk 12 forengaging the disk 10.

A hand grip 13 at one end to receive the threaded outer end of the stem 2 and-said hand grip is formed with a chamber 15 to receive the flanged outer end of the sleeve 11. A spring 16 is arranged in thg liand grin and encircles the has a threaded socket 14- shaft and bears against a part of the grip and one end of the sleeve 11 and acts to force the sleeve toward the member 8 so as to keep the clutch disks'in engagement with each other. The tension of the spring can be adjusted by screwing or unscrewing the hand grip on the stem. From the foregoing it will. be seen that the wrench can be used as an" ordinary wrench by seizing the hand grip in the hand and moving-the handle about the axis ofthe casing. In this action, the worm is locked to the socket member 5 and thus the socket member will move with the rest of the wrench. By attaching a flexible power shaft to the stem 9 of the member 8, the shaft- 3 will be rotated through means of the clutch parts and thus the worm 4 will rotate the member 5 in the casing 1. \Vith this wrench, a nut'or other object ca nbe screwed .on or a bolt or the like by the power means hand is released from the hand grip so that the power means, actin'gthrdugh the clutch parts, will turn the shaft 3 and thus the worm, acting on the teeth of the member 5 which is held against movement by the nut, will return the handle and the parts associated therewith, to their original position so that the handle can be again moved by hand to give the nut another tightening movement. This action is kept up until the nut is tight on the bolt. If necessary or desired, the hand grip can be turned at the end of each movement ofthe handle, first to disengage the clutch parts and then to engage the-clutch parts to prevent choking of the motor of the power means and to cause the motor to rotate the shaft 3 to return the handle to its initial position. It is thought from the foregoing description that the advantages and novel features of my invention will be readily apparent.

I desire itto be understood that I may What I- claim is I A wrench of the class described comprising a casing, a hollow handle connected therewith, and having its outer end threaded, a socket member 'rotatably mounted in 'the casing and having worm teeth on its periphery, a shaft rotatably mounted in the handleand having a worm thereon engagin the worm teeth, said shaft having its order end extending beyond the outer 'end of the handle, a clutch sleeve slidably but nonrotatably connected with the extended end of the shaft, a drive member rotatably eonnected with the end of the shaft, a clutch disk on the drive member, a clutch disk on the sleeve, a hand grip threadedly engaging MERLE E; BIGELOW. 

